CAIRO – As Londoners prepare for Thursday’s London mayoral elections, opposition Labour candidate Sadiq Khan has extended his lead over Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith in final polls to 14 points, putting him on course to become the first Muslim leader of a European Union capital.

“Londoners must choose hope over fear,” Khan said in an article published by The Guardian on Wednesday which stated contenders’ last appeal to voters.

“London is the greatest city in the world – but we’re at a crossroads.  I grew up on a council estate in south London, my dad was a bus driver and my mum sewed clothes to bring in extra money. My parents worked hard and were able to save up and buy a home for our family.”

There are 10 other candidates to replace Conservative Boris Johnson as mayor, a position that has responsibility for transport, policing, housing and promoting economic development.

A survey for the Evening Standard newspaper put Khan on 35 per cent compared with 26 per cent for Goldsmith, Agence France Presse (AFP) reported.

Khan’s lead lengthened once second preference votes were taken into account, to 57 per cent against Mr Goldsmith’s 43 per cent.

A second poll, by ComRes for LBC radio and ITV London news, put Khan on 45 per cent and Goldsmith on 36 per cent on first preference votes, moving to 56 per cent and 44 per cent on second preferences.

“Londoners have a clear choice on Thursday, they can change the direction our city is going in,” Khan said.

“I am asking them to choose hope over fear, to choose change over more of the same, and to vote for me to be a mayor for all Londoners.”

There are better chances for Khan as Goldsmith doesn’t have the popularity of current London Mayor Boris Johnson.

Therefore, Khan would have a better chance of winning the race if he was able to reach the more liberal inner London to beat Goldsmith, who is more popular in London’s more conservative outer districts.

Khan grew up one of eight kids in a crowded South London apartment.

He escaped the lower working class neighborhood to study law at the University of North London, and became a human rights lawyer before he was elected to Parliament in 2005 as a member of the Labour Party.

He studied law at the University of North London and later practiced as a human rights solicitor before being elected to Parliament in 2005 representing the ward he grew up in on a Labour Party ticket.

He has also served as minister of state for communities and transport minister.

Click here to read candidates’ last words to voters.